Thursday, 9 August 2012

This is my favorite banana bread recipe. I have been using for years, my mother also uses it, and every banana muffin or loaf I have seems to pale in comparison. So when I attempted a conversion to gluten free dairy free I was nervous. I didn't want to give it up and settle for one of it's mediocre cousins. Hallelujah! It worked perfectly... The first time! I am very pleased with the results, Max was too!

This recipe can be baked in a loaf pan or in muffin tins. I like muffins because they seem to stretch a bit farther as well as the convenience of them. They really are a great grab and go snack. I also like to freeze them and take one out at a time, leaving it on the counter for about an hour to let it thaw.

Preheat oven to 325 F
With a fork, mash bananas in mixing bowl.
Add sugar and melted margarine and mix well. Add vanilla, egg, salt, and baking soda. mix well again.
Add flour mix and xanthm gum and stir just until combined.
Pour into greased loaf pan or paper lined muffin tin.
If making loaf, bake for approximately 1 hour, or until toothpick comes out clean when inserted in center.
If making muffins, bake for approximately 20 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean when inserted in center.

Cool for fifteen minutes in pan, remove and cool completely on wire rack. Store in airtight container for up to three days or freeze for up to one month.

My taste tester enjoyed a late night snack while taking up residence on the floor. His only sound while eating was: "mmmmmmmm."

YUM! Delicious peanut butter cookies, fresh out of the oven. And all in about 20 minutes!

I adapted this recipe from "KRAFT", however I have changed it a touch to suit our tastes better. The original recipe contains no flour and is made with KRAFT peanut butter. I choose to use natural peanut butter and i add a bit of my gluten free flour mix. You can find this mix in my post for chocolate chip cookies HERE. This makes for a bit of a denser cookie that holds up a bit better.

There are only four ingredients in this recipe and most of them are usually on hand at all times.

TIP: Make more flour mix than you need and store the rest in an airtight container, that way you will have it on hand at all times.

Perfect Peanut Butter Cookies﻿

1 Cup Natural Peanut Butter (chunky or smooth, your choice)

1/2 Cup sugar (if you are using regular/sweetened peanut butter instead of the natural you should lower this to 1/3C)

1 Large Egg

1/2 Cup GF Flour mix

Preheat oven to 325 F

Mix all ingredients in a bowl with a wooden spoon. The mixture will get quite firm as the ingredients combine.

Roll about one tablespoon at a time into balls and place about an inch apart on a lined cookie sheet.

Using a fork, gently press down on balls in two directions to form a cross hatch pattern and slightly flatten cookies (my husband says that a peanut butter cookie just isn't a peanut butter cookie without fork marks.)

Alternatively, you could use your thumb, or a rounded small object (like a measuring spoon) to indent cookies and create a well.

The well gives you an opportunity to fill the tops of the cookies with jam (peanut butter and jam cookies!) or dairy free chocolate hazelnut spread.

Bake cookies for about 10 minutes, or until very light golden brown at very edges. Remove from oven and cool for ten minutes on pan. Transfer to wire rack and cool completely. Store in airtight container at room temperature for up to three days or freeze for up to one month.

Enjoy this quick and delicious treat. Don't forget to save some for the kids!﻿